U.S. patent number 5,335,465 [Application Number 07/536,462] was granted by the patent office on 1994-08-09 for mascara brush and method of manufacture.
This patent grant is currently assigned to L'Oreal. Invention is credited to Jean-Louis Gueret.
United States Patent |
5,335,465 |
Gueret |
* August 9, 1994 |
Mascara brush and method of manufacture
Abstract
A brush for applying mascara to the eyelashes including long
bristles and short bristles, the long bristles forming at least one
crest on the brush. The crest or crests form a helix the pitch of
which equals from one to four times the length of the brush.
Inventors: |
Gueret; Jean-Louis (Paris,
FR) |
Assignee: |
L'Oreal (Paris,
FR)
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[*] Notice: |
The portion of the term of this patent
subsequent to February 6, 2007 has been disclaimed. |
Family
ID: |
9384169 |
Appl.
No.: |
07/536,462 |
Filed: |
June 12, 1990 |
Foreign Application Priority Data
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Jul 26, 1989 [FR] |
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89 10084 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
132/218;
132/320 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A46B
3/18 (20130101); A46B 9/021 (20130101); A46B
2200/1053 (20130101); A46B 2200/106 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
A46B
3/18 (20060101); A46B 3/00 (20060101); A46B
9/02 (20060101); A46B 9/00 (20060101); A45D
040/26 () |
Field of
Search: |
;132/216,218,320
;401/122,129 ;15/159A,206 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
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2605505 |
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Oct 1986 |
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FR |
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2170996 |
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Aug 1986 |
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GB |
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Primary Examiner: Wilson; John J.
Assistant Examiner: Smith; Jeffrey A.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Cushman, Darby & Cushman
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A brush for applying mascara to the eyelashes, comprising an
elongated core defined by a metal wire folded to have at least two
branches between which are disposed a row of bristles and which are
twisted to form spirals to hold said bristles between said branches
so that said core is at least partially surrounded by bristles held
to extend radially from said core and distributed in substantially
regular fashion so as to form at least one crest of long bristles
surrounded by shorter bristles, the ends of the bristles defining a
contour in projection in a plane perpendicular to the core, and the
thickness of the crests measured at the periphery of the brush
being equal to at most 3 mm, characterized in that the crests form
a helix the pitch of which equals 1 to 4 times the length of the
brush.
2. The brush of claim 1, characterized in that the contour has the
shape of an ellipse.
3. The brush of claim 2, in which the end of the bristles in
projection define elliptical contour, characterized in that the
contour is eccentric with respect to the core.
4. The brush of claim 1, characterized in that the contour has the
shape of a semi-circle closed with a triangle.
5. The brush of claim 1, characterized in that the contour has the
shape of a shuttle.
6. The brush of claim 1, characterized in that the contour has the
shape of a regular polygon having from three to six sides.
7. The brush of claim 1 in which the contour defined by the ends of
the bristles substantially has the shape of an equilateral
triangle, characterized in that a plurality of crests are provided
with each crest rotated a one-quarter turn relative to an adjacent
crest over the length of the brush.
8. A method of manufacture of a brush of the type for applying
mascara to the eyelashes and having an elongated core that is at
least partially surrounded by bristles held by and extending
radially from said core and distributed in substantially regular
fashion so as to form at least one crest of long bristles
surrounded by shorter bristles, the ends of the bristles defining a
contour in projection in a plane perpendicular to the core, and the
thickness of the crests measured at the periphery of the brush
being equal at most to 3 mm, comprising the steps of modifying the
length of the bristles by peripheral milling or grinding so that
the end of the bristles defines the desired contour and forms
crests, and after milling or grinding, twisting the core by
one-quarter to one turn, such that the crests form a helix having a
pitch equal to from 1 to 4 times the length of the brush.
9. The method of claim 8, including the step forming the core by
folding a metal wire over a row of bristles, twisting said
thus-doubled wire such as to lock the bristles in place about the
core in the form of helical rows of radial bristles, prior to
modifying the length of the bristles by peripheral milling or
grinding so that the end of the bristles forms the desired contour;
and after milling or grinding, the core of the brush is twisted
again in such a manner that the crests form the said helix having a
pitch equal to from 1 to 4 times the length of brush.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a brush for applying mascara to
the eyelashes.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Brushes generally used for applying mascara to the eyelashes are
made up of bristles disposed on a core or support made of twisted
iron wire. The bristles are fixed radially on this same core in
such a way as to form rings, or more frequently a helix. The outer
envelope defined by the end of the bristles may have a cylindrical,
cylindroconical or conical shape. The twisted iron wire is
generally fixed in a sleeve that makes it possible to manipulate
the brush.
Mascara brushes are meant to be used for makeup having the
following three characteristics: It separates the eyelashes well,
so that they do not stick together in clumps; it is homogeneous;
and only a minimum number of passes of the brush is needed. For
good separation of the eyelashes and to prevent them from sticking
together, the bristles of the brush must be able to pass between
two eyelashes, separating them; in other words, the brush combs the
eyelashes. If the makeup is to be homogenous, the brush must be
able to coat the eyelash with mascara over its entire length, and
with a constant quantity of mascara.
In British Patent Application BG A 2 170 996, a brush that includes
long bristles and short bristles has been proposed. The long
bristles form naps disposed in longitudinal rows or in the form of
a helix; the width of the nap of long bristles is not insignificant
and is too large to enable good separation of adjacent
eyelashes.
In French Patent Application FR A 2 605 505, the applicant has
proposed a brush including long bristles and shorter bristles in
which the thickness of the crests, measured at the periphery of the
brush, equals at most 1.5 mm. Particularly in a plane perpendicular
to the core, the ends of the bristles form an envelope comprising a
polygon having from three to six sides, which are rectilinear or
concave. These brushes improve combing of the eyelashes, and each
of the apexes of the polygon, which is made up of tufts of
approximately 2 to 4 long bristles, acts as a comb.
The successive apexes are separated by an interval equal to the
distance between two rings of bristles, or to the pitch of the
helix, and they are aligned longitudinally in such a manner as to
form a crest. Hence the crest forms a rectilinear "comb". The
eyelashes enter between the teeth of the "comb" and are separated,
while sweeping the makeup product located on the shorter bristles
into the zone connecting the crests. Both good separation and good
coating of the eyelashes are obtained.
OBJECT AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In the present invention, it has been found that the separation of
the eyelashes is improved still further when the crest comprising
the long bristles (or "comb") is not rectilinear but instead is
slightly twisted into a helix.
Hence the subject of the present invention is a brush for applying
mascara to the eyelashes comprising an elongated core that is
surrounded at least partially by bristles held by and extending
radially from the core and distributed substantially regularly, so
as to form at least one crest of long bristles surrounded by
shorter bristles, in which the ends of the bristles define a
contour, in projection in a plane perpendicular to the core or in
the plane, and the thickness of the crests measured at the
periphery of the brush is equal at most to 3 mm, characterized in
that the crest or crests form a helix the pitch of which equals 1
to 4 times the length of the brush.
In other words, the crest is twisted by from one-quarter of a turn
to one turn.
It will be appreciated that when the crests are disposed in a
helix, adjoining eyelashes will not be made up at the same time by
the brush, but with a slight delay; this delay thus permits better
separation of the eyelashes. When the helix is overly tight, that
is, when the pitch of the helix is less than one length of the
brush, good separation of the eyelashes is not assured.
Furthermore, when the helical pitch is greater than 4 times the
length of the brush, there is no further notable improvement
compared with a brush where the crests are aligned
longitudinally.
It should be noted that mascara brushes generally have a length of
between 20 and 30 mm.
Moreover, according to the present invention, the passage from long
bristles to short bristles over an eyelash or a group of eyelashes
takes place equally progressively when a slight rotational motion
or a slight longitudinal displacement motion is imparted to the
brush. Thus regular coating of the eyelashes is more easily
obtained.
According to the invention, the contour defined in projection by
the end of the bristles may have the shape of a regular polygon
with from three to six sides, an ellipse, a shuttle, or a
semicircle closed off by an isosceles triangle.
In the case where the contour is an ellipse or a shuttle, the
contour is preferably eccentric with respect to the core of the
brush.
The invention also relates to a method of manufacture, in which a
brush having a cylindrical, cylindroconical or conical outer
envelope is made, in which the bristles are disposed on the core in
rings or in a helix, and the length of the bristles is subsequently
rectified by peripheral milling or grinding so that the end of the
bristles defines the desired envelope; it is characterized in that
after milling or grinding, the core is twisted by from one-quarter
to one turn, such that the crests form a helix having a pitch equal
to from 1 to 4 times the length of the brush.
In a particular method of manufacture, the core of the brush is
formed by folding a metal wire over a row of bristles; twisting the
thus doubled wire to lock the bristles in place about the bore in
helical rows of radial bristles; and subsequently rectifying the
bristles by peripheral milling or grinding so that the end of the
bristles forms the desired contour; after milling or grinding, the
core of the brush is twisted again in such a manner that the crests
form a helix having a pitch equal to from 1 to 4 times the length
of the brush. Generally, the diameter of the bristles used may vary
between 0.06 and 0.25 mm.
The bristles may be natural or synthetic in origin and are
preferably of polyamide (nylon). Their cross section may be
circular or polygonal, or they may have at least one capillary
groove over their entire length.
For better comprehension of the subject of the invention, several
purely exemplary, non-limiting embodiments will be described in
further detail below, as shown in the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is an elevation view of a brush with helical crests,
according to the present invention;
FIG. 2 is an elevation view of a non-twisted brush as found in the
prior art;
FIGS. 3, 3a, 3b, 4-7 are schematic views of the ends of brushes,
according to the invention; and
FIGS. 8 and 9 schematically show the relative positions of the
eyelashes and brush while makeup is being applied.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
FIGS. 1 and 3 show a brush according to the invention, which is
designated as a whole by reference numeral 1. The brush 1 comprises
a core 2 formed by a twisted metal wire on which the bristles 3 are
fixed in helixes 4. The core 2 is mounted to extend axially from a
stem 5. The brush is inscribed in a cone, the point of which is at
the end of the brush. The ends of the bristles define a contour
that is a substantially equilateral triangle (see FIG. 3), in
projection on a plane perpendicular to the core 2. The brush thus
has three crests 6a, 6b, 6c, shown in dot-dash lines in FIG. 1. In
this embodiment of the brush shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the crest 6a
describes a one-quarter turn over the length of the brush; that is,
the path of the helix equals one-fourth the length of the
brush.
FIG. 2, for comparison, shows a brush according to the prior art
which is identical to the brush shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 except that
the crests are rectilinear rather than in helical form.
FIGS. 3, 3a and 3b show various contours of the bristles with FIGS.
3a and 3b showing the contour in the shape of an ellipse. In FIG.
3b, the elliptical contour is shown eccentrically with respect to
the core 2.
FIGS. 4-7 show various contours defined by the ends of the
bristles, in projection in a plane perpendicular to the core of the
brush. In the FIG. 4, the contour 16 comprises a semicircle 16a
centered on the core 12 of the brush, which is joined at the
diameter to an isosceles triangle 16b the apex of which is
rounded.
In FIG. 5, the contour 26 takes the shape of a shuttle, and the
core 22 is disposed outside the center of symmetry of the shuttle
and, in the embodiment shown, on the short axis of symmetry of the
shuttle.
In FIG. 6, the brush has a cylindrical outer envelope. The contour
36 has the shape of a square, and the core 32 passes through the
center of the square.
In FIG. 7, the brush also has a cylindrical outer envelope. The
contour 46 has the form of a hexagon centered on the core 42.
When the user wishes to make up her eyelashes with the brush
according to the invention, she brings the brush 1 up to her
eyelashes 17 as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9. The eyelashes are well
separated by the three crests 6a, 6b, 6c, which form a "comb". As
schematically shown in FIG. 9, two adjacent eyelashes 17 are
engaged by the brush in slightly staggered fashion, which permits
better separation of the eyelashes. Furthermore, if a rotational
motion is imparted to the brush, for example by a one-quarter turn,
or if the brush is displaced longitudinally, the eyelashes are
progressively in contact with increasingly long bristles or
increasingly short bristles, which improves the homogeneity with
which the eyelashes are coated.
A brush according to the invention has a progressive helix from one
end of the brush to the other and assures a highly progressive
passage from short to long bristles, which makes it possible for
these bristles to penetrate progressively to the base of the
eyelashes and thereby smooth the eyelashes.
With the brush according to the invention, eyelash makeup can be
applied quickly, with a variably heavy coating, and with the
eyelashes perfectly well separated. Both the degree of twisting and
the number of twisted crests are elements in both makeup
differentiation and manipulation.
The brush can be reground in certain regions to obtain different
outlines.
The brush according to the invention, while made with flexible
bristles of reduced diameter, for example 0.06 mm, acts somewhat
like a comb, the teeth of which correspond to the crests of the
various sections. In the case of a brush of hexagonal contour, that
is, with six crests per section, and in which the core would
include 16 spirals, for an approximate length of 26 mm, then there
would be 6.times.16=96 bristles acting like 96 teeth of a comb,
even though they are also fine bristles.
* * * * *